Forever Changed
by DreamOnDreamers
Summary: Set some time after the Cullens leave in New Moon. I changed it so they had Bella's 17th birthday with the Cullens before they left. Something terrible has happened to Bella's Family and the wolves have no choice but to take Bella away. Rated for violence, romance, and drama. Read and review, PLEASE! full summary inside. NO FLAMES PLEASE!
1. Chapter 1

**Summary: Set a year after the Cullens left in New Moon. Bella's at her 18th birthday party at Angela's house when the pack, including her boyfriend of four months Jacob Black, arrive after promising Bella a wolf-free night with just her human friends. Victoria is in the area and has killed Charlie; and Bella's next. What will the wolves do in order to protect their rightful Alpha's Imprint? **

**Rated M for violence, romance, and dirty jokes and innuendos. Nothing too graphic and mild cussing. This is teenager friendly, not suggested for people under twelve years of age. **

**The beautiful, amazingly talented, and inspirational Stephanie Meyers owns all of it except my plot and a few OCs. I own nothing. Although, I wouldn't mind owning of few of the wolves… **

**Jacob: 19.**

**Bella: 18. **

**Sam: 24. **

**Paul, Jared, and Quil: 18. **

**Embry: 17. **

**Seth: 16. **

**Collin and Brady: 15. **

**Leah: 21. **

**Shawn and Dylan/OCs: 16. **

**Emily: 21. **

**Kim: 18. **

**Rachel: 20. **

Forever Changed

Chapter 1

Jacob POV

Bella walked over to me, wedging between swaying bodies as Sam, Embry, Quil, Paul, Jared, Seth and Leah and I stood in the doorway to the Weber's place, the lights dimmed with red and purple and green and yellow lights going off and on, flashing around in beams as kids danced and laughed. I gapped at Bella, as she came through the last bit of people, and I saw she was wearing a dress. With heels. The dress was short, just a little over halfway down her slender, fair-skinned thighs, and it was beautiful. It was black, strap-less sweetheart neckline, lace on top of the silk making the skirt white it was just silk above the belt, the skirt ruffled loosely with lace and satin, a silk black belt under her breasts with a little bow in the middle where the dress tightened before loosening out into the ruffled skirt, loose so it flowed around her slender body, hanging on her body perfectly loose but still tight enough to show off her curves a little, curves she usually kept hidden under t-shirts and jackets, but loose enough to still have some movement. The shoes were peep-toed black three-inch pumps, two slender straps across the tops of her ankles, fairly simple, but I knew she hated them. Boots and sneakers were her style, with skinny jeans and t-shirts with the bottom rolled up and tied with a rubber band. She didn't do dresses or heels, but dang, did she look good in them. The heels had a bit of glitter on them so they sparkled and twinkled when she turned just right so the light caught them. Her long hair was wavy and curly, falling around her face, cheeks a light rose color, lashes thick and feathery, free of any mascara, a light touch of black eyeliner and a very light brush of gold shadow, and her brown eyes were beautiful and guarded as she neared us, walking carefully and gracefully in her heels.

"What the hell are you doing here? I thought we agreed that you would steer clear," she demanded when she was a couple feet away, quietly so her friends couldn't hear her.

"We got a situation," I said as I stepped up to hug her. She took a small step back, neatly dodging the hug. I frowned at her, trying to not notice how incredible her legs looked with those heels and that dress.

"What happened?"

"You need to come with us."

"What? Why?"

"Have you seen Victoria here?" Sam asked before I could.

"No. . . Why?"

"You're coming with us. Lets' go."

Bella was about to say something, but a guy in a Letterman jacket came up and whipped her up into his arms like an overgrown infant, turning around in a circle a couple times before she made him put her down.

"Dominic, what is wrong with you?" Bella exclaimed as she regained her footing. The guy, Dominic, smiled at her sweetly.

"Girl, you're missin' all the action out on the dance floor. Come on and let the Indies go home. Lauren is talkin' smack 'cause you ain't out there."

"Tell her I can smack her twice as hard as she can talk it if she doesn't shut it."

"So you're coming?"

"In a minute, Dom."

"Alright." He turned and went back into the melee of dancing and laughing kids, fist pumping like an idiot. Bella laughed quietly, shaking her head.

"You like it rough, don't you?" Quil commented, grinning at Bella. She smiled at him innocently. He laughed with Paul, Embry, and Jared.

"You guys need to get the hell out of here," Bella said, looking at Sam.

"And why is that?" Paul asked, arms crossed over his chest.

Before she could answer, a brown-haired chick in a short dress which displayed her impressive cleavage came up to her, smiling and laughing as a black-haired girl in a similar dress followed her, holding her hand.

"Hey, birthday girl!" she called, throwing her arms around Bella.

"Bella!" the black-haired girl exclaimed as they came to stop beside her. "You will not believe what Mike and Tyler just did!"

"Guys, not now, please," Bella wined, sounding like a regular teenage girl for once instead of her usual worried and upset self.

"What's wr-" they noticed us then. The two new girls check us out quickly before looking back to Bella with raised eyebrows.

"Do you need help tossin' them out?" the black-haired girl asked, looking protective and ready to throw us out even in her three-inch tall stiletto heels and mini dress.

"We don't mind planting our heels in their asses," the brunette said sweetly, batting her eyes at Bella who turned her around and kneed her in the butt.

"Go and I'll be there in a minute. Go! Now! Move it!" when the girls were out of earshot, Bella pushed through the middle of the pack, led us out to the front porch, down the stairs, and over to the tree line, all in her heels and didn't trip or stumble once. I was impressed.

"Now you need to go."

"We're not leaving until we get what we came here for," Sam said.

"And what is that?"

"We have to go," I interrupted. "Now."

"I'm not going anywhere until someone tells me what the hell's going on!"

"You have to come with us," Sam said, face calm and relaxed.

"I have to go with you where!?"

"Now," we all said at the same time.

She wasn't coming, I knew she wasn't. She had that look in her eyes that said she had a plan for getting out of this. I'd come to know it well; her brown eyes turned into flames of rebellion, determination, a challenge that dared anyone to order her around. For some strange reason, it was a turn on for me.

"And if I don't want to go with you?" she said, glaring up at Sam with her beautiful face turned into a determined scowl.

"It wasn't a request, Bella. I know you think that we're being asses but it's for a good cause."

"Why?" she growled, angry tears shimmering in her eyes.

"Come on." I grabbed her hand but she yanked out of my grip, stepping away from me. I could have restrained her all night if I wanted to, but she didn't want me holding her hand, so I let her win that one for a moment.

"I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what's happened!"

I wasn't going to waste time we didn't have trying to convince her right now. I grabbed her around the waist gently but firmly, pressed my other arm against the back of her dress so it didn't pull up to show her underwear, and lifted her up off her feet and carried her towards my Rabbit and the other two trucks we'd driven here.

"Let me go!" she struggled against my arms as the pack flocked around us, making it impossible for her to escape even if she could, somehow, get free of my arms which, of course, she couldn't. She was about as strong as a normal one-hundred-and-ten pound human girl and it didn't matter. She was still human and I was still stronger and her being a girl didn't help her side. We were protecting her. She just didn't understand right now. She would. We had a game plan.

"Stop struggling and I won't throw you over my shoulder," I murmured in her ear, her thick curly hair cascading all around her shoulders and arms. She knew I didn't mess around when I spoke like that, so she stopped kicking at my legs, and then went still altogether, stiffening as she stared wide-eyed over my shoulder. I heard it then; the slow, nearly silent steps that no human ears could pick up on. The sound of useless breathing. The sound of a hollow, quiet heart.

I felt a loud growl build in my throat as I looked and saw the redhead, Victoria, standing just inside the protection of the shadows from the trees. She smiled at Bella who just stared at her, a strange mixture of awe and fear on her face. My nostrils flared as the bloodsucker's stench wafted towards us, burning my nose with its' too sweet smell.

"Hello, Bella," Victoria said, taking a step towards us. We all bristled; amazed a lone vamp would even come this close to werewolves. But with the humans around, none of us could afford to attack each other. That was why she was coming so close. Her movements were catlike, slow and deliberate, graceful and very, very dangerous. She smiled at Bella, showing her teeth, coated in deadly venom, so they shined in the dim light from the party. Her curly red hair lifted slightly with the light breeze, her eyes black with thirst, and I felt Bella shudder in my arms, her fingers fisting around my shirt as her heart beat faster and all color drained from her face. Her feet were still a foot or so off the ground, but she seemed to want to get closer now, trying to hide herself from Victoria though she didn't seem to be able to take her eyes off her.

"Just relax," Sam said to us quietly, so quiet that Bella probably couldn't hear him. I flexed my arms around her gently, and she delicately wiggled deeper into my chest, still staring over my shoulder, dumbstruck.

Victoria ignored all of us except Bella, seeming to only be interested in her.

"Have you talked to your father lately, Bella?" her voice was high, like a little girl's, and flowed like music. To me, it resembled nails on a chalkboard; Bella's voice was always the most beautiful sound to me.

"Why?" the word was nothing more than a whisper as it came from Bella's pink lips. She sounded afraid and concerned as Victoria took a step closer. She shrank into my chest, staring over my shoulder as the pack rustled around us, positioning them-selves. I carefully set her down on her feet, loosening my hold though I still held her in my arms. I wanted to be able to move quickly and didn't want to drop her if I had to.

"Because I have. He was so shocked, but it didn't last long when I told him it was because of you."

"What have you done?" Bella whispered.

_to be continued..._

**Good? Bad? Tell me what you think! I've already gotten half this story typed up, i just need to know if people are interested before i post it. :D **

**PS: I know this is kinda slow, but the next chapter will be better**


	2. Chapter 2

**Rated M for violence, romance, and a couple dirty jokes and innuendos. Nothing too graphic and mild cussing. This is teenager friendly, not suggested for people under twelve years of age. **

**The beautiful, amazingly talented, and inspirational Stephanie Meyers owns all of it except my plot and a few OCs. I own nothing. Although, I wouldn't mind owning of few of the wolves… **

**Jacob: almost 19.**

**Bella: 18. **

**Sam: 23. **

**Paul, Jared, and Quil: 18. **

**Embry: 17. **

**Seth: 16. **

**Collin and Brady: 15. **

**Leah: 21. **

**Shawn and Dylan/OCs: 16. **

**Emily: 21. **

**Kim: 18. **

**Rachel: 20. **

_Forever Changed_

Chapter 2

Jacob POV

Victoria smiled smugly at Bella, looking sickly angelic and sly.

"He won't be in danger anymore," she said nonchalantly, as if just talking about the weather.

There was a moment of silence while Victoria and Bella stared each other down. Victoria's black eyes bored into Bella's chocolate brown depths, and Bella stared back just as hard, her full lips pressed into a tight, angry line. Bella caved first, looking to the side as she blinked the tears away.

"Nice try, Victoria, but James played that card last year. My dad is never alone long enough for that and I do not believe you could kill him even if you had James and Laurent back with you." Bella's voice held a strong bite to it now, venom that I didn't know she could have. She sounded menacing, like she was intentionally trying to inflict pain with her words. I didn't know she even knew how to do that.

Victoria hissed and, though Bella was pleased she had hit a nerve, I could see in the wince on Bella's face that she was still afraid, no matter what her voice suggested.

"You are going to die, you know," Victoria snarled at her. "You won't best me twice."

"Maybe. But you'll be following quickly," Bella snapped quietly. That did it.

With a muted shriek, Victoria ran at Bella, moving so quickly she was nothing but a blur. I grabbed Bella and pushed her away to the side and then lunged in the other direction so Victoria whizzed through the middle of our group, rolling on the ground a few yards away as she rose from where she'd fallen.

Bella had fallen, I hadn't meant to push her as hard as I had, and lay kinda on her hip, her arms thrown out to catch herself, her long curly hair splayed all around her. She pushed herself up as Victoria wheeled around, her black duster coat and scarf whipping around her. She smiled at Bella, who was getting to her feet carefully, unwittingly exposing her creamy neck as she flipped her long, silken hair out of her face. Victoria disappeared in a blur of motion before she had Bella by the throat, lifted two feet off the ground. Just as Victoria brought Bella down to bite her neck, before I could do anything, a giant blurred ball of gray and sand colored fur slammed into Victoria, sending her spiraling into a tree as Bella collapsed to the ground with a small thud in much the same position as before, Paul, in wolf form, standing over her protectively while Leah and Seth snarled and snapped at the vamp, stalking her as she backed into the forest. Paul leaned down and nudged her shoulder with his nose gently, whining softly at her. I heard her murmur that she was fine. When Victoria darted at Seth, Leah chomped down on her arm, and chunked her to the side. Bella, with a small grunt, got up and Paul nudged her behind him with his nose. She stepped behind him carefully, her curly hair tousled and her eyes wide as she looked over at me. I lunged at Victoria as she bolted towards Bella, phasing midair. I collided with the vamp and sent us both flying into the trees, my pack right behind me. I noticed, out of the corner of my eye, Bella following behind Paul, looking close to tears as Victoria landed a solid kick in my shoulder. I heard her suck in a gasp as I felt it dislocate momentarily before my wolf healing fixed it. I lay there for a moment, letting my shoulder knit back together, and didn't see until it was too late that Victoria was going for my throat. I heard Bella scream a high pitched wail that tore through my head like a tornado. I had never heard a sound so terrified and tormented.

As her teeth brushed the fur at my neck, she was knocked aside by Leah. They rolled for a moment before Victoria backhanded her across the chest, sending her flying farther into the trees with a thud. I lunged up and locked my jaws around Victoria's shoulder before I shook my head rapidly, tearing off a nice chunk. She shrieked and swiped her hand at me but I ducked out of the way.

So fast she was nearly invisible, she whirled around and lunged at Bella. Bella ducked behind a tree and Victoria sailed past her as Paul growled and lunged after her. Jared ran over to Bella and herded her over away from the fight as Leah, Quil, Sam, and Embry joined Paul. Bella stayed behind Jared's massive form as bits of wood and dirt and rocks began flying everywhere and Jared nudged her with his nose, eclipsing her from view. Jared got her to me and Bella immediately ran to my right shoulder, fisting her hands in the thick fur there. I leaned my head down and nuzzled her hair gently as I felt her shaking. She gripped the fur tightly like it was a lifeline as Victoria suddenly burst through the wall Embry, Quil and Seth were making, and Jared jumped in her path as Victoria blurred at us. They slammed into each other and we all heard the crunch as Jared's shoulder broke. He whimpered and fell to the ground in painful heap, and Victoria lunged over him and towards Bella as Leah and Seth lunged after her. As I tensed to lunge at her, Bella felt it and, after a brief moment of hesitation, released her hold on my shoulder. This happened in a second and just in time for me to meet Victoria's attack. I pinned her beneath me and tore at her with my teeth and claws, mere feet from Bella. The instinct to protect Bella, kill this creature, and keep Bella alive, was like a command I had no chance, reason, or will to disobey. I needed to protect Bella. I just had to.

Victoria somehow managed to wiggle out from underneath me and ran at Bella who lunged behind a tree. We ran after them. Bella ducked behind a tree as Victoria crashed into it, then ran behind another tree and another as Victoria pushed them out of her way easily, all the while leading her deeper into the woods, away from the house and her friends, as trees crashed down.

"Isabella!" Victoria said in singsong, knocking down another tree as Bella covered her head as branches fell down towards her, and ran behind another tree before disappearing from sight for a moment. "Come out, come out wherever you are! You can't hide forever!"

"Jake!" Bella shouted as Victoria shoved a tree towards her. She jumped behind another tree and then another as Victoria hurled trees at her like they weighted nothing. I lunged after them. Bella stepped from behind another tree as Victoria ran after her. "Jacob!"

"No one can save you from death, Bella! Not this time," Victoria snarled before Leah and Seth, in wolf form, tackled Victoria away from Bella as she lunged at her with blinding speed. Bella ducked out of the way as another vamp, a boy with brown hair, lunged at her.

I lunged around the fight with Sam on my heels and tackled the brown haired vamp as he was about to tackle Bella, who screamed as his fingers brushed the brown curly hair that fell around her neck. Me and Sam killed the brown haired vamp and then went to help Leah and Seth. The whole pack circled Victoria, leaving no holes so it was impossible for her to escape. We snarled at her, tightening the circle, as she looked around spastically.

With growls and roars, we all lunged at Victoria. At the last possible second, she lunged up into the tree tops and then blurred out of sight. We weren't chasing her tonight. We waited until we couldn't hear her footfalls anymore. We all phased back, yanking our clothes on quickly. I went over to Bella where she was watching us from next to a small tree, looking picture perfect. We hugged each other tightly.

"Thanks," she said reverently, pulling back as the pack circled in around her, her curly hair blown back by the light breeze.

"Sure thing," we all said.

"I'm still not going," she said firmly, crossing her bare, slender arms over her chest.

"It's still not a request," I said, same tone, before I picked her up again.

"Jake, stop! I don't want to leave! Please! Put me down!" she pushed at my chest and I could hardly believe she was trying. It felt like a breeze blowing against me; harmless and easily ignorable. Not that I would ever say that to her. She already felt like she was 'the weak one around'; why make it worse and piss her off?

"You'll understand soon," I murmured in her ear before I gently set her down in the middle of the back seat of the big silver truck Paul had borrowed from his grandpa. I climbed in next to her with Seth on her other side, Quil and Embry in my Rabbit, Collin and Brady driving the other truck with Sam driving our truck and Paul riding shotgun. I saw Leah scramble into my Rabbit and Jared into the other truck as we were about to pull out. As the doors closed, Bella made a grab for the handle but Seth grabbed her and gently pulled her back so I could close the door, Seth uncharacteristically frowning. She hit against his arms and he released her as I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her onto my lap gently. She hit her fists against my chest, sitting in my lap, and yelled at me to let her go, tears rolling down her cheeks. I wrapped my arms around her flailing body and held her against my chest tightly. While this happened, Sam pulled out and started back towards her house, Collin and Quil trailing behind us in the other cars. Bella screamed and hollered, kicked and swore, threatened and begged, but it was useless. She gave up after about twenty minutes of us trying to calm her down and just curled up against my chest, crying with her face in her hands and her slender legs curled up in a near fetal position. I kissed the top of her head softly, my arms wrapped around her and my hand rubbing her back soothingly, trying to comfort her. Sam drove slowly, letting Bella calm down before he circled back towards her house.

"Bella," Sam said gently when we were a couple miles from her place. "You'll want to go pack a bag. We're heading to a safe house for a little while."

"Why?" she murmured, throat raw from screaming and crying. I hugged her tighter.

"Because Victoria is hunting you and it's too dangerous for you to stay in Forks right now," Sam explained.

"What about my dad?"

Sam hesitated.

"Bella," I said after a tense moment, tightening my arms around her. "Charlie's dead. Victoria killed him."

She turned her face into my chest, wrapping her arms around my shoulders. I pulled her hair away from her skin, trying to get some cool air on her, and my shoulder was soaked by the time she pulled back enough to slump against my chest, though she still cried.

"I'm so sorry, Bella," Sam said to her after she sat up a few minutes later.

She nodded at him.

"So what happens now?"

"We go to a safe house. It's just for a little while, until we can kill her."

"Do I have a choice?"

"No."

She pushed her hair behind her ears, and stripped off her heels, throwing them at the back of Sam's head with a quiet growl, face pinched in anger. One of them smacked his shoulder, heel-first, while the other hit the wheel. He let it slide, handing the shoes to Paul who put them in the floorboard. Bella ran a hand through her hair, pushing it out of her face, and wiped her face with her hands. I looked at Seth and he handed me his t-shirt. I touched her chin gently and she looked up at me, fresh tears in her brown eyes. I kissed her forehead softly and handed her the shirt. She took it gingerly, took the sleeve and wiped it under her eyes, clearing away the tears and slightly smudged makeup so when she was done the only thing that would suggest she'd been crying was her spiked lashes and reddened cheeks. She put Seth's shirt in the floor and sat back. I kissed her cheek and she moved away into the middle seat as my lips brushed her damp skin, drew her knees to her chest, arranged the skirt so it covered her, and then wrapped her arms around her legs and rested her chin on her knees. Then she sat there motionless, staring out the windshield impassively, her little toes curled around the edge of the seat. We were all quiet the rest of the way.

When we pulled up in front of her house, she climbed over Seth and out the door, not caring that she nearly kicked him in the face. He let it go without a second thought.

She slammed the door as hard as she could before jogging up the walkway barefoot with her arms wrapped around her chest tightly and her head ducked down a little, long curly hair bouncing up and down her slender back as she trotted up the stone path. She stopped with her hand on the railing of the front porch, one little barefoot on the bottom step, and whipped her head to the left towards the woods, red slightly swollen eyes glaring into the dark forest for two seconds before she whipped back around and ran into the house, slamming the door loudly and locking it. We saw Leah getting out of the Rabbit and running into the trees, vibrating like a tuning fork. We waited, but didn't hear anything that suggested there was something amiss. When she came back moments later and got back in the Rabbit, we began talking.

"Man, I feel like an ass," Seth said at the same time Paul said, "I had no idea she was so scared." They knew from me that when she was scared, Bella lashed out, threw stuff, screamed, threw a tantrum. I'd seen her scared enough times to recognize the signs. It was an instinct for her to lash out when she was afraid. I figured she had remained so calm before when things scared her and gotten hurt anyways that she just couldn't help her violent reactions now.

"It's for her own good," me and Sam said together.

"Someday, she'll thank us for this," Sam said.

"She'll be alright," I said, staring at the upstairs window as a lamp flicked on, knowing me and Sam were right. She'd be okay.

I listened to the drawers slamming closed and being ripped open, objects being stuffed into bags, Bella crying softly. It went silent for three seconds before, with a shriek that I prayed didn't wake the neighbors, a drawer filled with paper and pencils came flying out the window, crashing onto the lawn where the papers scattered around. We all jumped a little. A glass vase followed and so did an old lamp. Both broke noisily. After a moment of glass and plastic clanking against each other, a picture frame came out as well, empty. Cabinet doors slammed, metal clinked, buckles jingled, leather creaked. After ten minutes and twelve seconds, there was utter and completely silence for a full minute before Bella came back out dressed in skinny jeans, hiking boots, a tight black t-shirt with the leather jacket I had given her a month ago, a backpack slung over one shoulder with an old safari-type pack, a keychain dangling from it, and one large duffle bag with the seams bulging over the other shoulder. I jumped out, but Bella shouted at me to get back in the car. She ran down the drive, threw the bags in the second backseat in our truck, and then climbed over Seth again and sat in her seat as I jumped back in. I saw the butt of a 45. handgun sticking out of her boot and said nothing.

"Okay. Lets' move," Bella said, nodding at Sam. He nodded, put it in drive, and then peeled down the street as the vamp darted into the woods.

After that, it was quiet for twenty minutes before Bella spoke again.

"So where is this safe house?"

"Arizona."

"Where in Arizona?"

"Phoenix." Sam smiled at Bella over his shoulder. "You know the land there. You can navigate it like the back of your hand, correct?"

"Hells, yeah."

"And you'll have friends there," Seth added.

"No. She can't have contact with any of her past friends-"

"So I'm going to be the only girl in a safe house full of boys and Leah with her smartass attitude and rude comments. Who the hell am I supposed to talk to?" Bella asked, giving Sam a look that would kill the average human.

"You could talk to me," he said, trying to be helpful. Bella grabbed the t-shirt from the floor and threw it at his head. While Sam handed Seth his shirt back, Bella thought for a moment before she grinned, brown eyes mischievous.

"You know, there's a really great animal shelter a couple miles away from my house in Phoenix. I got a cat there once, but they have other animals too if you don't like 'em. . . ."

"Bella, we have enough to worry about without an animal to take care of."

"You won't be taking care of it. I will. And it'll keep my mind off of all the hell going on around me, so I won't have anxiety attacks every day."

She had a good point.

"I could get a dog, something that barks a lot at intruders so I'll have another level of security." Bella smiled when Sam grinned.

Paul sighed.

"Just let her get the dog, Sam, or she'll never shut up about it."

"Hey, like Vanessa Hudgens says; when a girl wants something, she's never gonna stop." She shrugged innocently. Seth and I chuckled. Only Bella would know that.

Sam sighed.

"Oh, alright. We'll get a dog."

Bella cracked a smug smile for a moment before she frowned again.

"So you guys are really dragging me to Arizona?"

"No. You're riding," Paul said. She reached up and punched his shoulder. He rocked towards the window to make her feel like she'd actually done something.

We drove for five hours before Bella put her foot down and demanded we stop at a hotel. It was about midnight, and Sam argued that she could sleep in the car and when she woke up we'd be in Arizona. She glared at him for a solid twenty minutes, before he finally caved and said he'd start looking for a hotel. After another twenty minutes, he pulled into a Days Inn in Salem, Oregon, a place Bella had suggested when she had commented that all the hotels would be off the highway. Sam booked us three rooms for one night, and then we all parked and went up to our rooms, Bella dragging her two backpacks while the rest of us dragged our backpacks as well.

"Four to a room. Who's with who?" Sam said, looking around at us.

Bella just grabbed a key from his hand, opened the door closest to her, and went in.

"Anyone who comes in, the toilet seat stays down, you stay out of my bags, and the lights are off in thirty minutes," she stated, going straight to the bathroom after kicking the door peg down so it stayed open. I followed with Quil and Paul close behind. While Bella took a shower, we all chose beds, turned on the TV and lights, and got out our boxers to sleep in. Ten minutes later, Bella came out drying her hair, dressed in very short hotpink sleep shorts and a tight black t-shirt. As she walked to her bed, I saw the shorts were actually just boyshort underwear, 'You Wish' written in cursive in silver glitter across the butt. I chuckled. Once she had her hair as dry as it was gonna get, she tossed the towel at the laundry basket, and then went to her backpack and produced a dark blue laptop which she set on the little desk over by the window, sat down, opened it, and began typing.

"I'm going to take a shower," Paul said, getting up from his bed. "Help me out and wash my back, Bell?"

"Unless you want me to wash it with acid, i suggest you get in there. Wouldn't want to burn anything important," she said, her eyes scanning the screen. Quil about snorted soda out of his nose.

"Bella, I love you," Quil snorted, wiping his face off with a napkin. Paul glared at him and, as he moved to take a swing at him, Bella spoke again.

"Touch him, and no one will be happy tonight," Bella said, looking at us over her shoulder. "Emily may put up with your whining and growling, but I am not in the mood for it tonight. Paul, go to the bathroom and take a shower before we all die of the smell rolling off you. Quil, I love you too, and shut up. Jake, get that smirk off your face. It's very irritating."

We all stared at her. She sighed and chunked a throw pillow at Paul, and he backed towards the bathroom while Quil and I looked down, counting our toes. Bella chuckled and went back to her computer.

While Paul went to take a shower, Quil walked over to Bella, looking at the computer screen over her shoulder.

"Whatcha doin'?" he asked, munching on peanuts.

"Looking at the pet shelter's website, seeing what dogs they've got. What do you think? A German Shephard or a Bloodhound?" she pointed to something on the screen. I went over and saw she was looking at the photos of the puppies. Sam had band Emily from these sites; every time she looked at them, she had to buy them all. "I like the German Shephard puppy."

"How old is he?" Quil asked.

Bella scrolled down to the papers.

"One month, two weeks. He already had his shots and everything, and he has a locater chip in him, so we'd never lose him." She read for a moment before she smiled. "He likes to lick toes." Quil and I chuckled, leaning close towards her so we could see the screen, on either side of her.

"How much is he?" I asked, not seeing the price on the screen. Bella bit her lip as she scrolled through the page, her brow furrowed in concentration for a minute before she smiled in victory.

"One-hundred solid. With tax. I can buy him with my emergency credit card my dad gave me." I saw her eyes shimmer for a moment before she blinked hard and blew out a sad breath. Quil rubbed her right shoulder while I rubbed her left, both of us kissing her cheeks softly. She smiled at us.

"We're sorry about that. We were chasing her and she ran into him and we pulled her off of him half a second too late," Quil explained to her quietly, crouched down beside her like me. "We all tried."

"How did she kill him?" Bella asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

"She snapped his neck."

Bella nodded, sitting back in her chair. She blew out a breath before she scrolled back up to the picture. She looked at the picture for a moment, and I looked too. The puppy was cute, as all puppies are, with unusual blue-gray eyes. Little pointed ears stuck out on top of its head, short little puppy muzzle, and a wagging tail, the fur black as ebony. She pulled one of her knees up to her chest, set the other leg in a crisscross applesauce style, and then slid her finger over the little pad on the laptop to move the curser over to the purchase box and clicked on it.

"Would one of you go and get my wallet out of my backpack? It's the one that looks like an old safari bag," she said gesturing towards her bed.

I got up and went over to where she'd laid her bags on the bed one away from the door and two beds away from the window, opened her purse, and looked through it for a moment before I found her wallet, after I found a 32 pistol and a jackknife. I took the wallet over to her, thinking.

"Why do you have a gun and a jackknife in your purse?" I asked as I handed her the hotpink wallet.

"It's a habit Charlie got me into. When I was smaller, he never let me leave the house without a weapon. I guess he just wanted me to always have a way to defend myself. He and his brother, a former Marine and my favorite uncle, taught me how to fight since I was six." She smiled, remembering, as she pulled a red credit card out of a hidden slot in her wallet. She shook her head, making her damp hair fall forward around her smiling face. "Uncle Cully made me run laps around his house every morning when I stayed at his place in California. He lives in San Diego. . . Man, how I used to really want to kill him back then." She laughed, typing in her credit card number. She chuckled, shaking her head again. I chuckled too. While she put in the required information, I got up, kissed her temple, and went to take a shower after Paul got out.

While I showered, I thought about Bella. We weren't exactly an item, but we weren't just friends either. I considered that progress. She seemed to share the same feelings for me. I really cared about her, I loved her, we had a connection, and I knew she cared about me. She was just so beautiful, soft and sweet and kind, but I knew she was scared. I grabbed my bottle of Old Spice shampoo, and scrubbed some into my short hair. She had been hurt so bad by that leech, it hurt her just to think of him, let alone talk about him. Sam and the others had really pushed to gain information from her, find out what she knew and if it was more than we knew, in the beginning. Bella hadn't hesitated to tell us; she had no loyalty to them now. She said that after all they had done, she saw no reason to keep what she knew a secret from her new friends who shared her feelings. She had really tried to tell us everything she knew, and we all appreciated it, but when Sam had asked about Edward specifically, when he said the leech's name, Bella had bit her lip and fallen silent, leaning against the kitchen counter with me right next to her. I had gently laid my hand on her shoulder, pulling her over so she could lean her head on my shoulder, her eyes closed tightly. No one had asked another question about the Cullens for the rest of that day, and no one dared ask about Edward again. Period. She had told me, on one of our many days relaxing in my garage, he could read minds, and was the fastest of all the Cullens, but that was all she had said. I knew that she had more to tell, but I wasn't going to push her; she would tell me when you was ready.

She was strong, she really was. I don't really know many girls who could have survived what she had. I mean, she'd survived several encounters with other vampires, and then one of the Cullens had tried to kill her on her eighteenth birthday, and now the redhead was hunting her. And her father was dead. I guess it explains why she had been so shaken up when she found out I was a werewolf. She'd believed we were killers. And I could imagine that with all the recent disappearances in Forks that she was scared we were the killers, and that she was in danger around us. I could understand why she would be scared and wary of us, knowing what the Cullens had done and it probably left her wondering just what we could to do too. But we had all made sure she understood the truth.

Me and Bella had had many conversations about werewolves and the supernatural world. She was curious, and, after she got over the initial shock and fear, she was completely indulged in my world. I loved the way her eyes lit up when we talk about it. She seemed to be really interested in the physical changes being a werewolf did to me**(AN: and no, not like that, you perverts. XD, I'm** **kidding. Continue!) **Body temperature, accelerated healing and strength and speed. She said she liked 'the Muscles', as she affectionately nicknamed me and the rest of the pack, though she didn't say that in front of them, only me. Actually, it seemed like she was really herself when it was just us two. Like she was afraid of being herself in front of the guys and Emily and Kim and Rachel. Her and Rachel were really good friends and they joked around but when Bella was around the guys, it was like she felt awkward around them. I guess I could understand why she felt that way, being as her and Paul had a history that was exactly flattering and her and Sam had a little mini war going on, mentally and emotionally. Maybe if she hadn't punched Paul, on two different occasions, I could see those two being friends. Paul wasn't holding a grudge against her, he actually had told me that he really liked her.

It wasn't anything romantic, he felt like a big brother to her and felt the same way we all did about her; we felt like we needed to protect her. And her being under five feet tall and absolutely adorable only made that instinct more potent. Okay, maybe she was 5'3, 5'4, but you get the point. She was very beautiful, very petite and slender and feminine, and we all, not just the pack but the girls and Billy and Old Quil and Sue and Harry and all involved were very protective of her. She didn't even realize how much we all cared for her, how many people she had to back her up. Or maybe she did and just didn't know how to handle it. She was smart, we all knew that. She was beautiful, kind, generous, caring, but she was also a victim. That's what the Cullens had done to her. We had all seen her, at first, as nothing better than the Cullens, because she had dated Edward, but after we had all hung around her and talked about the Cullens with her, we all realized she hated the Cullens as much as we did. She hated what they'd done to her, what they had put her through. She hated that she still hurt over Edward, still had nightmares because of him. She hated that he still lingered in her life when all she wanted was to just be free of him. I didn't know how to help her, I just was there for her and kept her from giving up. She had to do the letting go part.

She really was getting better. She was smiling now, she talked more, she even listened to some of Emily's music. Those two were becoming very close. I think it's because Emily understood Bella's heartbreak. Even Leah was starting to warm up to Bella. Her and Bella talked almost every day either over the phone or when she came over to Emily's with me. We were all surprised, including both Bella and Leah, that they were becoming friends. They still had smart remarks about each other, but at least they were joking now. Mostly.

Bella had blamed Sam in the beginning for me changing, for messing her life up again and taking away what had made her feel like she could be okay again - her words - but after the night at the bonfire, she hadn't been so put out with him. She talked to him more, and I gathered that they had a lot in common. One of the key things being that they both really, really, really didn't like the Cullens. None of us did. The Cullens were to blame for our changing, but, truthfully, we really didn't hate being wolves. We actually enjoyed it after the scary beginning. We had all become really attached to Bella. It would be kinda hard to let her go now.

I rinsed off and turned off the water.

Bella had told me she was eager to forget the Cullens, and I had told her that we could help with that. She cared about all of us just like we cared about her, but we all knew she was holding out. As Emily and Kim and Rachel put it, Bella's true self was just barely under the surface of her quiet, cautious outer layer and was begging to come out.

I was hoping that this time we spent in her hometown would bring out the real Bella.

I dried off, pulled on my sleep-shorts, then put up my shampoo and razor and aftershave in my little cameo toiletry bag before I walked out and put it back in my backpack. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Bella glancing at me over her shoulder, her eyes lingering on my bare chest and shoulders, and when I looked over at her, she looked back at her computer screen hastily, a pretty rosy blush in her cheeks. I grinned to myself, looking back to my bag after I saw Quil waggle his eyebrows at me.

When I was zipping up my bag, Sam came in, checking on us.

"Is everything okay in here?" he asked as he walked in, dressed in a t-shirt and long pajama pants, looking at Bella.

"It's all good in here," Quil said from where he was eating peanuts from his chair next to Bella's. "Bella just bought a German Shepherd puppy."

Sam looked at her with an arched eyebrow.

"I bought him online with my own money. We'll pick him up in Arizona whenever we get there. They said they'd hold him for a week," Bella explained, pulling up his picture and beckoning Sam over to her. He walked over and looked.

"Does he have his shots and papers and everything?"

"Uh huh. I'll buy all his necessities so you don't need to worry. The only thing I need you to do is drive me there to pick him up, unless you're willing to let me go alone."

"No. You're not going anywhere alone until we've taken care of Victoria."

"Figured," she muttered before smiling. "Me no care. I have a puppy now."

"What're you gonna name him?" Sam asked as he straightened up from his crouch, grinning at her.

"I dunno. I'll figure it out when I pick him up." She yawned massively, adding a loud groan as she finished and shook her head, shaking out her long, luxurious, curly tresses. She was so adorable when she did that. "I'm going to bed." She closed the laptop, got up, turned Sam around, and then pushed him towards the door, her hands braced against his broad shoulders as she pushed him out the door, her head at least a foot shorted than the top of his shoulder.

"Alright. We're leaving at six, so you guys need to be up by five-thirty. Get some rest." Bella closed the door after she had him safely outside the room. She locked it and then crawled into her bed, sighing with pleasure as she sunk into the silky sheets and plush mattress, the thing nearly swallowing her little body.

"Oh, yes. Mmmm. That feels so good," she moaned, pulling a pillow down under the blankets and curling around it delicately, tucking her face into it with the sheet up around her neck. I chuckled.

Bella flicked off the lights exactly thirty minutes after she entered the room and we were surrounded in darkness, Paul glaring at her in the darkness as he threw his Play Boy magazine on the floor. Bella was asleep within minutes but none of us slept. Well, Quil did for about an hour, but his snoring woke Bella up and let me say that this girl has got to work on her temper, 'cause she has some serious stuff going on. She sat up, got out of her bed, walked over to Quil, and thumped him on the end of his nose harder than really necessary. He shook his head and sat up a little.

"What was that for?"

"You snore like a drunken sailor with emphysema," she grumbled before getting back in bed. "Keep your chainsaw turned off or I'll be forced to break it. Goodnight again." And all was quiet.

For an hour.

Paul flicked on his lamp which had Bella immediately awake as well, though she awoke with a curse that wasn't very ladylike.

Bella groaned, pulling the pillow off her face. "What is it now?"

"I heard something. . . . oh jeez, sorry. It was just the A.C."

"That's it!" she shouted as she jumped out of bed and fast-walked to Paul's bed where she proceeded to slap him on his arms, face, shoulders, back, anything she could reach while he put his arms up to try to defend himself.

"Are you out of your mind? What is wrong with you?" Paul exclaimed as he fell off the bed because Bella kicked him. She kicked him, again and again, another time, five times, angry and irritated and very, very tired.

"You're what's wrong with me! What is it with you people and your aversion to a good night's sleep?"

She grabbed his hair, and started jerking his head around.

I got up, went over, grabbed Bella around her waist, hauled her up and off Paul, carried her to her bed, and plopped her back down on her bed while Quil laughed.

"Cool it, Bella," I told her sternly, keeping her seated on her bed with my hands on her hips as she placed her hands against my chest to try and shove me away. "Relax. Just go back to sleep and we'll all be quiet and not wake you up until it's time to go. Promise." She scowled at me in the dim light, full lips pouting adorably. I smiled and kissed her cheek sweetly. She groaned, flopping back into the middle of her bed, blindly reaching for the covers as she curled around a pillow, muttering something about hating me and not caring anymore. I didn't take it to heart, she never meant it when she said that, and grabbed the covers and pulled it up around her gently. "There you go. Sleep tight."

She mumbled something about killing me with a hot poker, and then was asleep again. I tucked the blankets around her gently and kissed her head softly, gently smoothing her silky hair down as she gave a small, adorable snore, making me crack a smile. I turned around and lightly smacked Quil and Paul, and quietly told them to shut up and go to sleep before I, too, crawled into bed. Bella tossed and turned for a bit before, with a sigh, she got up and crawled into bed with me, cuddling against my chest. I smirked, curling my arm around her shoulders as I lay on my back.

"Shut up," she murmured, closing her eyes. I smiled, and slowly rolled until I was on my side facing her, wrapping both my arms around her as her slender leg slid between mine, her little feet cold as she pressed them against my hot skin. I kissed the top of her head softly, nuzzling my face into her hair and inhaling her strawberry shampoo. She nuzzled her face into my bare chest, sighed quietly, and then fell fast asleep. . .

**I know! I'm terrible for not updating sooner, but I got so busy with family stuff and crap and then my computer spazzed for the umpteenth time and yeah, I'm sorry. This chapter was over 7,000 words, very, very long, but I wanted to get moving in the story, so this is what I did. The next chapter will be uploaded to the site very soon, I promise. Editing is the bane of my existence. Okay, well, do be good readers and click that little review button for me! I've noticed a lot of people are reading my stories but not reviewing, which makes me sad, because I'd love to know what you all think, so even if you don't like what you're reading or you have a suggestion, I still want to hear them, so pretty please review! If I can get at LEAST five more reviews, I'll update sooner! **


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